Xref: utzoo sci.math:4838 sci.physics:4892 comp.edu:1452
Path: utzoo!attcan!uunet!convex!killer!ames!mailrus!cwjcc!tut.cis.ohio-state.edu!osu-cis!att!cbnews!lvc
From: lvc@cbnews.ATT.COM (Lawrence V. Cipriani)
Newsgroups: sci.math,sci.physics,comp.edu
Subject: How to beat the high cost of text books!
Keywords: free text books
Message-ID: <2219@cbnews.ATT.COM>
Date: 19 Nov 88 03:34:21 GMT
Organization: AT&T Bell Laboratories, Columbus
Lines: 31

Yet another quarter passes at Ohio State University where I pay
a lot of money for a book that is hardly used.  So I figure there
has to be a better way ...

Why not have a Cheap Textbook Foundation?  It would be along the
lines of the Free Software Foundation.  Through the cooperation of
many authors texts could be written on virtually any subject.  To
begin start with something like Calculus or Physics, that just about
all science undergrads need.  Then if that works out, go on to other
areas.  The books would be written in a common typesetting language,
say LaTeX, and stored on line.

Who would write them?  Who knows?  The FSF has many people involved.
I would think a lot of people would be interested in writing a book
or part of one just for the fun of it.  I am!

As for production, copies of the books could be down loaded, printed
on a high quality laser printer, then copied en masse, and then sold.
So the $64,000 question is ...  Would this produced books less expensively
than the current system, would the books be of high quality?  I don't
have any idea about the cost.  The quality issue is really up to the
people that are involved, junk or masterpieces could be produced.  Ideally
they would be of high enough quality that universities would adopt them
as texts.

So, what do people think?  Is this a worthwhile idea?  What are the
obstacles to implementing this?  Do publishers have a lot of influence
on what texts are chosen?
-- 
Larry Cipriani, AT&T Network Systems, Columbus OH,
Path: att!cbnews!lvc    Domain: lvc@cbnews.ATT.COM